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☆ Food Aid for Sudanese Refugees in Chad Could End Next Month, WFP Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( March | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - Food aid for hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees in Chad, some of whom are close to starvation, will be suspended next month without more funding, the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday. But the WFP says it is struggling to feed them all and many are already skipping meals. Nearly half of Sudanese refugee children under five-years-old are suffering from severe anemia. A supply route from Chad into Sudan's Darfur, where hunger is worsening, is also at risk due to funding shortages, WFP said. With more resources, WFP would be able to position food stocks ahead of the rainy season when some refugee populations in Chad get cut off from supplies by muddy rivers.

Persons: Pierre Honnorat, Emma Farge, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Food Programme, WFP's Locations: GENEVA, Chad, Sudan, Chad into Sudan's Darfur

☆ Russia Responsible for Navalny's Death, UN Rights Expert Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( March | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - The U.N. human rights expert on Russia said on Monday that Alexei Navalny's death was Moscow's responsibility as he was either killed in prison or died from detention conditions that amounted to torture. "So the Russian government is responsible, one way or another, for his death," Mariana Katzarova told Reuters on the sidelines of an event on Russian political prisoners at the United Nations in Geneva. Russia's spy chief previously said that Navalny, who died on Feb. 16 in an Arctic prison, died a natural death. "Ever since the death of Alexei Navalny, there is no day passing without asking myself, who is the next Navalny?" It has denied his wife Yulia Navalnaya's accusations that President Vladimir Putin had him killed.

Persons: Alexei Navalny's, Mariana Katzarova, Russia's, Navalny, Katzarova, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Alexei Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya's, Vladimir Putin, Navalnaya, Putin, Emma Farge, Cecile Mantovani, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Reuters, United Nations Locations: GENEVA, Russia, Russian, Geneva

☆ Britain's Rwanda Asylum Plan Raises Deep Concerns: UN Rights Chief
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - Britain's revived plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda would drastically strip back courts' ability to scrutinise decisions and risks dealing a "serious blow to human rights", the United Nations rights chief said on Monday. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is pushing legislation through parliament that would declare Rwanda a safe country for asylum seekers despite misgivings from some lawmakers, who have attacked the plan as unethical and unworkable. Under the proposals, asylum seekers who arrive on England's southern coast in small, inflatable boats would be sent to Rwanda to live. More than 1,300 asylum seekers have arrived in Britain on small boats so far this year. (Reporting by Emma Farge; Additional reporting by Andrew MacAskill in London; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Persons: Britain's, Rishi Sunak, Volker Turk, Turk, Sunak, Emma Farge, Andrew MacAskill, Nick Macfie Organizations: United Nations, Conservative Party Locations: GENEVA, Rwanda, Britain, London

☆ Gaza Post-War Reconstruction Estimated at $20 Billion: UN Trade Body
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - Gaza will need a new "Marshall Plan" to recover from the conflict between Israel and Hamas, a U.N. trade body official said on Thursday, adding that the damage from the conflict so far amounted to around $20 billion. Speaking on the sidelines of a U.N. meeting in Geneva, Richard Kozul-Wright, a director at trade body UNCTAD, said the damage was already four times that endured in Gaza during the seven-week war in 2014. "We are talking about around $20 billion if it stops now," he said. Kozul-Wright said the estimate was based on satellite images and other information and that a more precise estimate would require researchers to enter Gaza. War in Israel and Gaza View All 209 ImagesThe reconstruction will require a new "Marshall Plan", he said, referring to the U.S. plan for Europe's economic recovery after World War Two.

Persons: Richard Kozul, Wright, Kozul, Emma Farge, Gabrielle Tetrault, Farber, Toby Chopra Organizations: Hamas, UNCTAD Locations: GENEVA, Gaza, Israel, Geneva, U.S

☆ Returning Syrian Refugees Face Abduction, Sexual Abuse: UN
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - Syrian refugees who fled the war are facing gross human rights violations such as torture and abduction on their return home while women are subject to sexual harassment and violence, the U.N. human rights office said in a report on Tuesday. "There are reasonable grounds to believe that the overall conditions in Syria do not permit safe, dignified and sustainable returns of Syrian refugees to their home country," she added. A Syrian government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. "Women are nowadays forced to do all sorts of things in order to go on with their lives. "In some cases, they are even divorced by their husbands and disowned by their own families," the report said.

Persons: Elizabeth Throssell, Emma Farge, Ros Russell Locations: GENEVA, Syria, Geneva, Israel, Gaza, Ghouta

☆ Undercover Israeli Killings in West Bank Hospital May Be War Crimes: UN Experts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - The killing of three Palestinian men in a hospital in the occupied West Bank last month by Israeli commandos disguised as medical workers and Muslim women may amount to war crimes, a group of U.N. experts said on Friday. The experts concerned are special rapporteurs engaged by the United Nations to examine a specific human rights issue. War in Israel and Gaza View All 194 ImagesIsrael’s military was not immediately available for comment on their statement. The West Bank has seen an explosion of violence since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and the subsequent invasion of Gaza by Israel. (Reporting by Emma Farge in Geneva; Additional reporting by Emily Rose in Jerusalem; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Persons: Ibn Sina, prima facie, Emma Farge, Emily Rose, Gareth Jones Organizations: West Bank, Shin, Basel Al, United, Hamas, Jenin Brigade, Islamic, The West Bank Locations: GENEVA, Jenin, Basel, Israel, United Nations, Gaza, headscarves, Palestinian, Geneva, Jerusalem

☆ More Than 8,000 Killed During 2022 Mariupol Siege - Human Rights Watch
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Emma FargeGENEVA (Reuters) - At least 8,000 people were killed by fighting or war-related causes in Russia's months-long conquest of Mariupol, one of the biggest battles of the nearly two-year war between Russia and Ukraine, according to Human Rights Watch. The Human Rights Watch assessment, based on satellite and other images of grave sites, is one of the only independent estimates of the death toll so far. Human Rights Watch said the total could be significantly higher than its estimate since some graves have been known to contain multiple bodies and some sites might not have been identified. The full 224-page report 'Our City Was Gone: Russia's Devastation of Mariupol, Ukraine' compiled with NGO Truth Hounds and architecture practice SITU, also draws on some 240 interviews with mostly displaced Mariupol residents. "Russian forces' devastation of Mariupol stands out as one of the worst chapters of their full-scale invasion of Ukraine," said Ida Sawyer, crisis and conflict director at Human Rights Watch, calling for governments to investigate.

Persons: Emma Farge GENEVA, Mariupol, Ida Sawyer, Emma Farge, Thomas Balmforth, Peter Graff Organizations: Human Rights Watch, United Nations Locations: Mariupol, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian

☆ Hamas Studies Ceasefire Proposal After Deadly Israeli Hospital Raid in West Bank
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

By Raneen SawaftaWEST BANK/GAZA/DOHA (Reuters) -Hamas said on Tuesday it would study a new ceasefire proposal in the war with Israel in Gaza, hours after Israeli commandos killed three Palestinian militants in a raid on a hospital in the occupied West Bank. The raid underscored the risk of the Gaza war spreading to other fronts, while Israeli forces fought new battles with Hamas fighters in the Palestinian enclave. The Israeli undercover squad broke into the hospital, headed to the third floor and killed them using silenced pistols, hospital sources said. Since then, 26,751 Palestinians have been killed and 65,636 wounded by Israeli actions in Gaza, the Gaza health ministry said. TANKS IN ACTIONIsrael mounted a new push in northern Gaza after earlier reporting successes against Palestinian militants there.

Persons: Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, William Burns, Qatar's, Islamic Jihad, Ibn Sina, Mohammad, Najy Nazzal, Mai Alkaila, Mohammed Jalamneh, Israel, Christian Lindmeier, Alkaila, Al Shifa, Khan Younis, Crescent, Ari Rabinovitch, Daniel Williams, Nidal Al Mughrabi, Ali Sawafta, Emma Farge, Angus MacSwan, Timothy Heritage, Gareth Jones Organizations: BANK, Reuters, West Bank, CIA, Islamic, Hamas, Basel Al, Palestinian Health, United Nations, World Health Organization, WHO, Nasser, Health, Palestinian, Residents, Deir Al, Al, Amal Locations: GAZA, DOHA, Israel, Gaza, Paris, Cairo, Ibn Sina, Jenin, Basel, Geneva, Beach, Al, Israeli, Kuwaiti, Gaza City, Deir, Jerusalem, Doha, Ramallah, Clauda, Dubai

☆ WHO Chief Breaks Down Describing 'Hellish' Gaza Conditions
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - The head of the World Health Organization called for a ceasefire and a "true solution" to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in an emotional plea to the global health body's governing body on Thursday where he described conditions in Gaza as "hellish". "I'm a true believer because of my own experience that war doesn't bring solution, except more war, more hatred, more agony, more destruction. So let's choose peace and resolve this issue politically," Tedros told the WHO Executive Board in Geneva during a discussion about the Gaza health emergency. In the same address, Tedros warned that more people in Gaza would die of starvation and disease. "If you add all that, I think it's not easy to understand how hellish the situation is," he said.

Persons: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, let's, Tedros, Israel, Meirav Eilon Shahar, Cecile Mantovani, Emma Farge, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: World Health, WHO, Reuters Locations: GENEVA, Israel, Gaza, Eritrea, Geneva

☆ Exclusive-China Lobbies Countries to Praise Its Rights Record Ahead of UN Review - Diplomats
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

Four diplomats told Reuters that China's mission at the United Nations in Geneva had been sending memos to envoys in the build-up to the review of Beijing's record by the U.N. Human Rights Council scheduled for Tuesday. China's mission did not respond directly to a request for comment on the reported lobbying. In a statement, it said Beijing "firmly opposes the politicization of human rights" and "promotes a fairer and more just, equitable and inclusive global human rights governance". China's mission told Reuters its government "attaches high importance to this UPR (Universal Periodic Review) cycle", referring to the U.N. rights council's regular reviews of countries' rights records. China routinely rejects foreign criticism of its human rights record, saying all Chinese are treated equally in accordance with the law and that foreign countries should not interfere.

Persons: Emma Farge GENEVA, China's, Xi Jinping, Raphael Viana David, Emma Farge, Laurie Chen, Andrew Heavens Organizations: Reuters, United Nations, Human Rights, United Arab, UPR, Diplomats, International Service for Human Rights Locations: China, Hong Kong, Xinjiang, Geneva, Beijing, China's Xinjiang, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, United States, African, Antigua, Barbuda, Tibet, U.N, Germany

"The situation is getting worse by the hour," Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in Gaza, told reporters via video link. "There's intensified bombing going on all around, including here in the southern areas, Khan Younis and even in Rafah." Thomas White, Director of Affairs at the U.N. Palestinian agency in Gaza, said a population of more than 600,000 had been ordered to move to escape bombardment. The WHO's Peeperkorn said the agency had complied with an Israeli order to remove supplies from warehouses in Khan Younis. Reporting by Emma Farge and Gabrielle Tétraut-Farber; Editing by Rachel More and Janet LawrenceOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Fadi Shana, Khan Younis, Richard Peeperkorn, There's, Peeperkorn, Thomas White, White, James Elder, I've, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Israel, Emma Farge, Gabrielle Tétraut, Farber, Rachel More, Janet Lawrence Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, WHO, Health Organization, United Nations, UNICEF, Thomson Locations: Israel, Palestinian, Rafah, Gaza, GENEVA, ., Cairo, Khan

☆ WHO board to hold emergency meeting on Gaza health situation
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Smoke rises above Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, December 4, 2023. "We want to empower the WHO and call for the Israeli side not to target the medical sector. We want to allow for fresh medical supplies," he told Reuters, adding that his diplomatic mission was drafting a motion to be reviewed by the board. Israel has accused Hamas of using ordinary Gazans as human shields by placing command centres and weapons inside hospitals and other civilian buildings. The WHO's governing board is made up of 34 members and typically meets every January to fix the agenda for its annual assembly.

Persons: Athit, Tedros Adhanom, Ibrahim Khraishi, Benjamin Netanyahu, Emma Farge, Matthias Williams, Alison Williams Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, GENEVA, Health, West Bank, WHO, Qatari, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza Qatar, Geneva, United States, France, China, Japan

☆ UN commission to investigate Hamas sexual violence, appeal for evidence
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The commission could struggle to gather sufficient evidence to support future charges if access is not granted. Israeli authorities have already opened their own investigation into sexual violence during the most deadly attack on Israel in its history, including rape, after evidence emerged pointing to sexual crimes, such as victims found disrobed and mutilated. Evidence about sexual violence includes testimonies given to Reuters since Oct. 7 by first responders at the sites of the attacks as well as military reservists who tended to the bodies in the identification process. It is about to release a public "call for submissions" for evidence on Hamas' sexual violence, said Pillay, who is a former U.N. human rights chief and International Criminal Court judge. "I was very impressed with the deputy prosecutor's (Nazhat Shameem Khan) emphasis on how seriously she wishes to investigate the incidents of sexual violence, the complaints coming from Israel," she said.

Persons: Abu Mustafa, I'm, Pillay, Issam Abdallah, Israel, Emma Farge, Stephanie Van Den Berg, Emily Rose, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Criminal, Human Rights, International, ICC, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Palestinian, Israeli, Geneva, Washington, Hague, Jerusalem

☆ Disease could be bigger killer than bombs in Gaza - WHO
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Mohammed Salem/ File photo Acquire Licensing RightsGENEVA, Nov 28 (Reuters) - More people could die from disease than from bombings in the Gaza Strip if its health system is not repaired, a World Health Organization spokesperson said on Tuesday. Gaza health authorities deemed reliable by the United Nations say more than 15,000 people have been confirmed killed in Israel's bombardment of Gaza, around 40% of them children, with many more dead feared to be lost under rubble. Citing a U.N. report on the living conditions of displaced residents in northern Gaza, she said: "(There are) no medicines, no vaccination activities, no access to safe water and hygiene and no food. She described the collapse of Al Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza as a "tragedy" and voiced concern about the detention of some of its medical staff by Israeli forces during a WHO evacuation convoy. They don't have access to safe water and it's crippling them," he said.

Persons: Khan Younis, Mohammed Salem, Margaret Harris, James Elder, Emma Farge, Rachel More, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Health Organization, United Nations, Al, WHO, Children's Agency, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Geneva, Al Shifa

☆ Israel seeks recognition of Hamas sexual violence at UN meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Israeli authorities have opened an investigation into sexual violence during the most deadly attack on Israel in its history, including rape, after evidence emerged pointing to sexual crimes, such as victims found disrobed and mutilated. The private event, attended by diplomats, rights groups and U.N. agencies, is the first Israel-organised event outside the country to address acts of sexual violence by Hamas, which Israel's diplomatic mission described as "widespread". U.N. rights bodies "downplayed" and "minimised" the sexual violence, said Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, an Associate Professor at the Bar-Ilan University, who spoke at the event. "The Office is attempting to carry out remote monitoring of these and other human rights violations reported in Israel and the OPT (Occupied Palestinian Territories). Lack of direct access to Israel and the OPT has hampered the work," said Ravina Shamdasani in response to emailed questions.

Persons: Evelyn Hockstein, Ruth Halperin, Kaddari, " Halperin, Volker Turk, Ravina, Halperin, Emma Farge, Maayan Lubell, Ari Rabinovitch, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Ilan University, Reuters, Women, Human, Human Rights, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Israel, Geneva, Palestinian Territories, Jerusalem

☆ Human Rights Watch says rocket misfire likely cause of deadly Gaza hospital blast
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A satellite image shows Al-Ahli hospital, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Gaza November 7, 2023. The explosion at the Al-Ahli hospital triggered outrage across the Arab world. Palestinians blamed an Israeli air strike, while Israel said it was caused by a misfiring Palestinian rocket launch. The Al-Ahli hospital blast was one of the most fiercely disputed incidents in a war marked by accusations from both sides of disinformation and war crimes. Palestinians accuse Israel of targeting hospitals and schools, while Israel says Hamas uses ordinary Gazans as human shields by placing military positions in civilian buildings.

Persons: Israel, Basem Naim, Emmanuel Nahshon, Naim, Ida Sawyer, Emma Farge, Nick Macfie, Giles Elgood, Alexander Smith Organizations: Hamas, Maxar Technologies, REUTERS, Rights, Rights Watch, Al, Ahli Arab Hospital, HRW, Israel's Foreign Ministry, Authorities, Hospitals, Thomson Locations: Ahli, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza, Al

"The released hostages are on their way to hospitals in Israel, where they will re-unite with their families," the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement. Israel released 39 Palestinians - six women and 33 minors - from two prisons, the Palestinian news agency WAFA said. Saturday's swap follows the previous day's initial release of 13 Israeli hostages, including children and the elderly, by Hamas in return for the release of 39 Palestinian women and young people from Israeli prisons. On Friday Hamas also released a Philippine national and 10 Thai farm workers. Israel has said the ceasefire could be extended if Hamas continued to release at least 10 hostages a day.

Persons: Israel, WAFA, Srettha Thavisin, Thais, Thongkoon Onkaew, Natthaporn Onkaew, Joe Biden, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al, Osama Hamdan, Majed Al, Ansari, Maya Regev, Emily Hand, Hila Rotem, Emily, Raya Rotem, Shorouk Dwayyat, Emily Rose, Bassam Masoud, James Mackenzie, Maayan Lubell, Emma Farge, Aidan Lewis, Adam Makary, Nidal, Moaz Abd, Ali Sawafta, Sybille de La Hamaide, Jeff Mason, Humeyra Pamuk, Leslie Adler, Clarence Fernandez, William Mallard Organizations: Sunday, International Committee, Israel Defense Forces, West Bank, Hamas, Reuters, Brigades, IDF, United Nations, CNN, Al, Thomson Locations: Israel Egypt, Qatar, West Bank GAZA, JERUSALEM, Israel, Gaza, Egypt, Palestinian, Rafah, Al, Bireh, Ramallah, Philippine, U.S, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Al Jazeera, Nantucket , Massachusetts

☆ 'Immense relief' as UN deliveries to northern Gaza ramp up
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-26 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A dispute over aid flows to the north of the Israeli-besieged enclave temporarily held up a deal to free captives on Saturday. The deliveries were made to hospitals where rations were controlled, Elder said. "It seems callous and cold to think that we may be getting to the end of those deliveries and hostilities will continue, (that) the war, this war on children will continue." Even as the aid deliveries flowed north, Elder said he saw hundreds of Gazans heading in the other direction, fearing the renewal of Israeli bombardments if the four-day truce is not prolonged. I saw grandmothers carrying children, children pushing grandmothers in wheelchairs through the dust," he said.

Persons: gaunt, children's agency's James Elder, UNICEF's Elder, Elder, Emma Farge, Giles Elgood Organizations: Palestine Red Crescent Society, Hamas, UNICEF, GENEVA, UN, Cross, Thomson Locations: Palestine, Gaza, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza City

☆ Hamas delays second hostage release until Israel lets aid into northern Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A convoy of ambulances heads towards north Gaza during a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas, near Gaza City November 24, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 25 (Reuters) - The armed wing of the Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Saturday that it had decided to delay the second round of hostage releases until Israel is committed to letting aid trucks enter northern Gaza. Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades added that the hostage releases would be delayed if Israel did not adhere to the agreed terms for the release of Palestinian prisoners. In response, an Israeli military spokesperson told French television channel BFM that Israel fully respected the truce. There was no immediate comment from the ICRC on whether the release of hostages and detainees had been delayed.

Persons: Abu Mustafa, Osama Hamdan, Hamdan, Ahmed Tolba, Emma Farge, Sybille de la, Adam Makary, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Brigades, ICRC, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Hamas, French, Lebanon

☆ What is the humanitarian situation in besieged Gaza?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Parts of northern Gaza has been cut off from outside help for weeks, with one U.N. spokesperson describing it as a "hell on earth". AID DELIVERIESThe Rafah crossing reopened for limited aid supplies on Oct. 21 and all other crossings into Gaza remain shut. Egypt has said 130,000 litres of diesel and four trucks of gas will be delivered daily to Gaza when the truce starts, and that 200 trucks of aid would enter Gaza daily. WATERFresh fuel deliveries in recent days has allowed some water wells and pumping stations to resume operations in southern Gaza. FUELIsrael has been allowing a limited daily amount of fuel to enter Gaza from Egypt, with 75,000 litres arriving on Nov. 23.

Persons: Khan Younis, Abu Mustafa, OCHA, Emma Farge, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Hamas, World Health Organization, WHO, Oxfam, UNRWA, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Palestinian, Khan, Egypt, Rafah

☆ Red Cross begins operation to transfer Gaza hostages, Palestinian detainees
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The International Red Cross confirmed on Friday that its teams had started carrying out a multi-day operation to facilitate the release and transfer of hostages held in Gaza and of Palestinian detainees. A spokesperson confirmed that 24 hostages were transferred out of Gaza and handed over to Egyptian authorities at the Rafah border crossing. He said they were accompanied by eight staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in a four-car convoy. The ICRC, a neutral, Swiss-based organisation, also says the operation also involves the delivery of additional, much-needed aid into Gaza. Reporting by Emma Farge, Editing by Rachel More and Sarah MarshOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Cross, Fabrizio Carboni, Emma Farge, Rachel More, Sarah Marsh Organizations: Cross, International Committee, ICRC, Thomson Locations: GENEVA, Gaza, Rafah, Swiss

☆ China says no unusual pathogens found after WHO queries respiratory outbreaks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The WHO had asked China for more information on Wednesday after groups including the Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases (ProMED) reported clusters of undiagnosed pneumonia in children in north China. No unusual pathogens have been detected in the capital of Beijing and the northeastern province of Liaoning. The U.N. health agency had also asked China for further information about trends in the circulation of known pathogens and the burden on healthcare systems. WHO China said it was "routine" to request information on increases in respiratory illnesses and reported clusters of pneumonia in children from member states, such as China. The WHO said that while it was seeking additional information, it recommended that people in China follow measures to reduce the risk of respiratory illness.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, pneumoniae, Ben Cowling, Deena Beasley, Andrew Silver, Jennifer Rigby, Emma Farge, Urvi, Robert Birsel, Miyoung Kim, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, World Health Organization, WHO, International, National Health Commission, FTV News, Hong Kong University, Health Commission, Xinhua, Influenza, Thomson Locations: China, Beijing, Liaoning, Wuhan, WHO China, Taiwan, Los Angeles, Shanghai, London, Geneva, Bengaluru

☆ WHO chief says an employee was killed in Gaza alongside family
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

GENEVA, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization chief said on Tuesday that one of its employees had been killed in Gaza alongside her six-month-old baby, husband and two brothers. "My colleagues and I are devastated: we have lost one of our own in Gaza today," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media platform X, showing a photo of the victim, named Dima Alhaj. "Reportedly multiple other family members sheltering in the same house were also killed," he added, without giving further details of how the family died and who was responsible. Reporting by Emma Farge, Editing by William MacleanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ghebreyesus, Dima Alhaj, Emma Farge, William Maclean Organizations: World Health Organization, Thomson Locations: GENEVA, Gaza

☆ Baby Anas, rescued from Gaza's Al Shifa Hospital, feels warmth of mother's embrace
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Ibraheem Abu Mustafa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"I was losing hope to see my baby alive," said Warda Sbeta in an interview with Reuters TV on Tuesday. Anas was one of only three out of the 31 premature babies rescued from Al Shifa who stayed behind in Gaza. Of the other two, one was unidentified, according to doctors at the Rafah hospital. "They called us from Al Shifa to come and take the baby but it was hard for us to return. The parents rushed to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, but were told they had to go to the maternity hospital in Rafah, where they were finally reunited with Anas.

Persons: Anas, Mother, couldn't, Gaza City's, hadn't, Warda, Sbeta, Khan Younis, Al Shifa, Gaza's Al Shifa, James Elder, Elder, Israel, Emma Farge, Estelle Shirbon, Nick Macfie Organizations: Al Shifa, Reuters, Health Organization, Hamas, REUTERS, Monday, UNICEF, Nasser Hospital, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Egypt, RAFAH, Al, Rafah, Gaza City, Gaza's Al, Israel, Palestinian, Khan, Geneva

☆ Civilian death toll in Ukraine tops 10,000 - U.N. Human Rights Office
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A worker inspects a site in a residential area damaged during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine September 21, 2023. REUERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsGENEVA, Nov 21 (Reuters) - More than 10,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022, with about half of recent deaths occurring far behind the front lines, the U.N. Human Rights Office said on Tuesday. The U.N. human rights mission in Ukraine, which has dozens of monitors in the country, said it expects the real toll to be "significantly higher" than the official tally since corroboration work is ongoing. "Ten thousand civilian deaths is a grim milestone for Ukraine," said Danielle Bell, who heads the monitoring mission. Older people who may be unable or unwilling to relocate to safer places make up a disproportionate fraction of those killed in Ukraine, the U.N. data showed.

Persons: Valentyn, Danielle Bell, Emma Farge, Andrew Heavens, Bernadette Baum, Nick Zieminski Organizations: Rights, Human Rights, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia, Moscow

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